Mary's Special Role for Those in Purgatory

Mary's Special Role for Those in Purgatory

Posted by Dr. Taylor Marshall 

Since November is the month in which we pray for the poor souls in Purgatory, I'd like to offer great hope and consolation to those who are eagerly praying for their departed loved ones. No doubt, our Protestant friends will be taken back a bit since both Purgatory and Mary are controversial for them - and now we are bring them together. Tradition and Scripture state that Mary has a special dominion over the faithful departed. The reason for this is that Our Lady was not required to die since she was preserved from original and actual sin. “The wages of sin is death,” writes the Apostle, and our Lady did not have sin. 

Tradition states that Our Lady begged Christ that she might be allowed to die in order to be more perfectly conformed to Him. This prayer was granted and so Christ gave her a special dominion over the faithful departed. 

Concerning the Blessed Virgin, the Scriptures speak of her rein over the departed. The following passages speaks of the "Mother of Fair Love":

For I make doctrine to shine forth to all as the morning light, and I will declare it afar off. I will penetrate to all the lower parts of the earth, and will behold all that sleep, and will enlighten all that hope in the Lord. (Ecclus 24:44-45) 

Saint Peter Damian, Saint Ildefonse, and Saint Frances of Rome assure us that it is the feast of the Assumption of Mary (Aug 15) on which the most souls are released from Purgatory each year. Moreover, her role is especially confirmed by the Catholic Church’s teaching regarding the Brown Scapular give by Mary to Saint Simon Stock. Enrollment in the Brown Scapular and faithful living, Mary teaches, will lead to the delivery of a soul from Purgatory in less than a week’s time. 

Saint Bernardine of Sienna, a great preacher and reformer, taught that Mary was the “plenipotentiary” for souls in Purgatory. Saint Teresa received a vision in which the souls in Purgatory received a spray of cool water whenever the Holy Rosary is prayed for them. Saint Alphonsus Liguori, also a Doctor of the Church, confirmed that praying the Rosary is a great means to bring relief to souls in Purgatory. Saint Pio, when giving a Rosary to someone said, “Let us empty Purgatory.” 

So then, devotion to Mary and devotion to the poor souls are interlinked. Let us rely on our sweet and stainless Mother as the “plenipotentiary” for our brothers and sisters being refined for the eternal happiness of Heaven. 

Helpful and recommended links on this topic. Please visit:

What is Purgatory and is it in the Bible?

Why is Mary the Mediatrix of All Graces?

Padre Pio's Mysterious Encounters with Souls from Purgatory

Padre Pio's Mysterious Encounters with Souls from Purgatory

Posted by Dr. Taylor Marshall 

God chose Saint Pio of Pietrelcina to reveal the supernatural life to our tepid era. His supernatural interior life was made visible through his immense suffering and his well-known stigmata. As we move into November and pray for the Poor Souls in Purgatory, we do well to recall a few encounters of Padre Pio with the souls of Purgatory.

Padre Pio once described an encounter he had with testified the following to the Bishop of Melfi, His Excellency Alberto Costa and also the superior of the friary, Padre Lorenzo of San Marco.

Below is third person written testimony of the words of Padre Pio:

"While in the friary on a winter afternoon after a heavy snowfall, he was sitting by the fireplace one evening in the guest room, absorbed in prayer, when an old man, wearing an old-fashioned cloak still worn by southern Italian peasants at the time, sat down beside him. Concerning this man Padre Pio states: ‘I could not imagine how he could have entered the friary at this time of night since all the doors are locked. I questioned him: 'Who are you? What do you want?'

The old man told him, "Padre Pio, I am Pietro Di Mauro, son of Nicola, nicknamed Precoco." He went on to say, "I died in this friary on the 18th of September, 1908, in cell number four, when it was still a poorhouse. One night, while in bed, I fell asleep with a lighted cigar, which ignited the mattress and I died, suffocated and burned. I am still in Purgatory. I need a holy Mass in order to be freed. God permitted that I come and ask you for help." 

According to Padre Pio: "After listening to him, I replied, 'Rest assured that tomorrow I will celebrate Mass for your liberation.' I arose and accompanied him to the door of the friary, so that he could leave. I did not realize at that moment that the door was closed and locked: I opened it and bade him farewell The moon lit up the square, covered with snow. When I no longer saw him in front of me, I was taken by a sense of fear, and I closed the door, reentered the guest room, and felt faint.”

A few days later, Padre Pio also told the story to Padre Paolino, and the two decided to go to the town hall, where they looked at the vital statistics for the year I908 and found that on September 18 of that year, one Pietro Di Mauro had in fact died of burns and asphyxiation in Room Number 4 at the friary, then used as a home for the homeless. 

Around the same time, Padre Pio told Fra Alberto of another apparition of a soul from Purgatory which also occurred around the same time. He said: 

One evening, when I was absorbed in prayer in the choir of the little church I was shaken and disturbed by the sound of footsteps, and candles and flower vases being moved on the main altar. Thinking that someone must be there, I called out, "Who is it?" 

No one answered. Returning to prayer, I was again disturbed by the same noises. In fact, this time I had the impression that one of the candles, which was in front of the statue of Our Lady of Grace, had fallen. Wanting to see what was happening on the altar, I stood up, went close to the grate and saw, in the shadow of the light of the Tabernacle lamp, a young confrere doing some cleaning. I yelled out, "What are you doing in the dark?" The little friar answered, "I am cleaning." 

"You clean in the dark?" I asked. "Who are you?" 

The little friar said, ‘I am a Capuchin novice, who spends his time of Purgatory here. I am in need of prayers.’ and then he disappeared," 

Padre Pio stated that he immediately began praying for him as requested, and it is not known if he had any further dealings with this particular soul. However, in regards souls in Purgatory it is very interesting to note that later in life Padre Pio once said that ‘As many souls of the dead come up this road to the monastery as that of the souls of the living.” 

Without a doubt, many souls from Purgatory visited Padre Pio seeking his prayers, sacrifices and sufferings to obtain their release.

Pray for the Poor Souls daily.

Please watch the following video about the Stigmata of Saint Pio as compared to Saint Francis:

When in Cebu City, please visit http://gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs. Avail of the opportunity to own a condominium unit in Cebu City for only P12,000.00/month with your own parking lot. Hurry while the supply of units last. Just call the Tel. Nos. shown below.

Tel. No. (053)555-8464/09164422611/09173373687.

How to Spring a Soul from Purgatory in 4 Steps

Posted by Dr. Taylor Marshall 

According to the current Enchiridion of Indulgences, one can apply a plenary indulgence to a departed soul by the "visitation of a cemetary" {Coemeterii visitatio} from November 1st till the 8th (i.e. the octave of All Saints).

Here's the text:

13. Visit to a Cemetery (Coemeterii visitatio)

An indulgence, applicable only to the Souls in Purgatory, is granted to the faithful, who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, even if only mentally, for the departed.

The indulgence is plenary each day from the 1st to the 8th of November; on other days of the year it is partial.

In order for the indulgence to be plenary, the following conditions must also be met alone with the visit and prayers at the cemetery:

1. Sacramental confession within “about twenty days”[1] of the actual day of the Plenary Indulgence.
2. Eucharistic Communion on the day of the Plenary Indulgence.
3. Prayer for the intentions of the Pope on the day of the Plenary Indulgence.
4. It is further required that all attachment to sin, even venial sin, be absent.[2]

Taking young people, particularly teenagers, to cemeteries to pray for the dead is a wholesome thing. Young people are not usually aware of their mortality. It's a good thing to recognize the tombs of the dead...and pray for them.

Perhaps our culture's fascination with death and horror movies is related to the fact that young people are isolated from death and prevented from attending funerals. Do you agree? Please leave a comment.

---

[1] Apostolic Penitentiary, Prot. N. 39/05/I (18 February 2005).

[2] If the latter detachment from sin is in any way less than perfect or if the prescribed three conditions are not fulfilled, the indulgence will be partial only. In accordance with the canonical norms 34 and 35 of the Enchiridion of Indulgences (1968), a confessor or bishop can dispense someone of one or two of the norms above.

When in Cebu City, please visit http://gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs. Avail of the opportunity to own a condominium unit in Cebu City for only P12,000.00/month with your own parking lot. Hurry while the supply of units last. Just call the Tel. Nos. shown below.

Tel. No. (053)555-8464/09164422611/09173373687.